Pillow basalt forms underwater. Water absorbs heat from lava much more quickly than air does.
Basalt typically has smaller crystals than granite. This is because basalt cools and solidifies quickly on the Earth’s surface, limiting crystal growth, while granite forms beneath the surface and has more time for larger crystals to develop.
Granite with larger crystals, basalt with smaller crystals.
Crystals in basalt that formed underwater are smaller because they cool faster in the water, resulting in less time for the crystals to grow. On the other hand, crystals in basalt that formed on the ground have more time to grow as they cool more slowly, leading to larger crystal sizes.
The crystals in basalt that formed underwater are typically smaller due to the rapid cooling of lava when it comes into contact with water. This rapid cooling prevents the crystals from having enough time to grow larger, resulting in a finer-grained texture. In contrast, basalt that cools on the ground generally does so more slowly, allowing for the formation of larger crystals. This difference in cooling rates is a key factor in the size disparity of the crystals.
Pillow basalt is formed from solidifying lava which erupts under the surface of a body of water. Because of this, it cools much faster, allowing less time for crystal growth.
Yes, the crystals in dolerite are generally larger than those in basalt. Dolerite, also known as diabase, is an intrusive igneous rock that cools more slowly beneath the Earth's surface, allowing larger crystals to form. In contrast, basalt is an extrusive igneous rock that cools rapidly at the surface, resulting in smaller crystals. Thus, the crystal size in dolerite typically exceeds that of basalt.
Since basalt is extrusive it cools quickly and forms small crystals.
Gabbro has larger crystals and a coarse-grained texture compared to basalt, which has fine crystals and a fine-grained texture. This suggests that gabbro cooled slowly beneath the Earth's surface, allowing larger crystals to form. In contrast, basalt cooled quickly on the Earth's surface or in shallow intrusions, leading to the formation of smaller crystals.
Basalt is a fine-grained volcanic rock, usually dark in color, while gabbro is a coarse-grained intrusive rock that is also dark in color. Basalt tends to cool and solidify quickly on the Earth's surface, resulting in a fine-grained texture, whereas gabbro cools slowly beneath the surface, allowing larger mineral crystals to form.
Basalt can't see crystals and basalt is extrusive. Granite you can see the crystals and is intrusive.
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A factor that determines crystal size in igneous rocks is the speed in which the lava/ magma crystallised or froze. As pillow basalts form at mid ocean ridges where magma is erupted into direct contact with the cold sea water the crystals form very fast and are therefore small. Other basalts erupted on land still have relatively small crystals and crystallised relatively fast but overall slower then pillow basalts.